Ex-lover of Aussie exchange student who nearly died in Taiwan after she slipped him rat poison is jailed

By ASHLEY NICKEL, NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 08:29, 22 July 2026 | Updated: 08:59, 22 July 2026 A Taiwanese woman who poisoned an Australian exchange student has been sentenced to 11 years and two months behind bars. The woman, known as Yang Chin-ping, was found guilty of attempted murder after she poisoned Australian 23-year-old Alex Shorey at least three times in 2023. Yang, a widow in her 40s, slipped superwarfarin, a rat poison, in Mr Shorey's food and drink after he discussed that he wanted to end his time in Taiwan early. She was charged with attempted murder in December 2024.  While speaking to the court in March 2026, Mr Shorey recalled having a pleasant relationship with Yang in its early stages. Yang had wanted the relationship to stay open - which Mr Shorey believed was because she missed her late husband, who died mysteriously in December 2022. However, tensions between Mr Shorey and Yang escalated when she took his passport - which made it impossible for him to withdraw money sent by his family. The conflict peaked in March 2023 when Mr Shorey revealed he was preparing to head home in April after growing tired of study and financial stress. Just two days after their discussion, Mr Shorey suffered diarrhoea, abdominal pain, vomiting, persistent nosebleeds, blood in his urine, and blood spots on his skin and tongue. Alex Shorey (above) was poisoned by his lover while on exchange in Taiwan in 2023 Yang (right) will spend 11 years and two months behind bars He recalled drinking a glass of grape juice Yang gave him which allegedly tasted strange. Mr Shorey was released from hospital into Yang's care in early April but was put back in intensive care later that month. The second hospitalisation was after Yang had served the Aussie a grass jelly drink. Mr Shorey's mother, who'd flown out to help care for her son, was packing Mr Shorey's belongings in Yang's home when she found an empty rat poison container in her wardrobe on May 1. Mr Shorey was flown back to Australia on a medevac flight on May 3, 2023. 'Although Alex fortunately did not die, the suffering he endured in Taiwan was immense,' the Taipei District Prosecutors Office previously said. 'He was at constant risk of massive bleeding from various parts of his body and could have died at any moment. 'The defendant's actions, methods and post-crime attitude were extremely malicious and there were no mitigating factors to show compassion,' they alleged. Yang previously denied putting rat poison in Mr Shorey's drinks, instead claiming she'd planned to use the rat poison to take her own life. The court ruled Yang had purposely poisoned Mr Shorey to prevent him from returning to Australia and noted she showed no remorse for the crime. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.